Agenda item - Declaration of Office, Acceptance Speech and Vote of Thanks to the Retiring Mayor

The Mayor will make her formal declaration of acceptance of office and acceptance speech and  will call on Councillor Appich to move a vote of thanks to the retiring Mayor, Councillor Robins.

6.1      Cllr Deane stated: “I Cllr Lizzie Deane, having been elected to the office of Mayor of Brighton & Hove, declare that I take that office upon myself and will duly and faithfully fulfil the duties of it according to the best of my judgement and ability. Thank you all very much. So, Ladies and Gentlemen, Councillors, distinguished guests, family and friends, I would like to say thank you to all for coming here today to see me inaugurated as Mayor. I’d like to thank Cllrs Phelim Mac Cafferty and Sue Shanks for nominating me and supporting me, and for their kind words. I’d also like to thank officers for all their work in supporting getting me here today; and my friends and colleagues in the Green Group for placing their trust in me to become Mayor of Brighton & Hove. Annual Council and Mayor-making is traditionally a time of celebration and rejoicing, but there is an exception to every rule, and I’m deeply conscious that I was scheduled to become Deputy Mayor today, and that the person who should rightfully be sitting in this chair this afternoon is Cllr Mary Mears. I’m very sad indeed that she’s been prevented from taking up the role by ill health, and I’m sure I speak for us all in sending her our very best wishes for her full recovery.

When Cllr Mears became ill, I made it clear that I wouldn’t consider taking up the mayoralty unless or until all other alternatives had been explored, and I want to assure members and residents of the city that I’m very much aware that the mayoralty is not a jolly; it’s an enormous honour and a privilege, with considerable responsibilities, and particularly in the circumstances in which I find myself Mayor, I pledge to do my utmost for this Council, its members, our city and its residents to take on this role with the humility respect and dedication that it merits. I cannot think of a more wonderful place to be first citizen than Brighton & Hove. We’re so fortunate to live in a place with deep history and traditions, yet at the same time a forward-thinking city. We even have United Nations’ status, for heaven’s sake: how wonderful and cool is that?  If I were to describe Brighton & Hove in just one word it would be ‘open’: open to business, particularly important as we come out of Covid. Open to fresh and new ideas, and I’d urge you all to take a look at the Public Arts Strategy that was launched just last Saturday. And above all, open-hearted, and I’m passionately proud that we’re a City of Sanctuary, and proud that this was agreed unanimously by this Council. It’s a tremendous honour to be representing Brighton & Hove, meeting new people here, and welcoming visitors from home and abroad.

Moving on to my chosen charities, I’m keen to cover as wide a spectrum and as many communities as I can. The traditional number is three; I have to say that it’s so hard to be able to encompass everybody in just three charities, so I have chosen nine. It’s not as many as the 27 that I think have been chosen in the past, but it does I think cover all the bases. Most of them you’ll be familiar with because they’ve been Mayor’s charities before. As Cllr Mac Cafferty has outlined that they are: Sussex Heart Charity, Off The Fence, Allsorts, The Martlets, Brighton Fringe and Fair Share. But I’d also like to welcome some new introductions: New Note works with recovering alcoholics and addicts to help forge a new life through music, and I look forward to hearing the New Note orchestra performing over the coming year as I hope you will too. I’ve chosen The Campaign to Protect Rural England for their work both within our cherished downland estate and in bringing the countryside into the city. I’m sure most of you will already know their Plant Your Postcode scheme, and you may already have trees in your ward through their schemes. Team Domenica started here in Brighton & Hove, supporting adults with learning difficulties through training and job opportunities. They now run five cafes, having just opened the latest one in the Jubilee Library, so when you’re out and about in town and you fancy a cup of coffee, you know where to go. I’m delighted that Father Dominic Keech, Rector at St Nicholas Church has agreed to act as my chaplain. As St Nick’s is not only my local church, it’s also the Mother church for the city, I feel that Father Dominic is the most natural and perfect choice and I look forward to working with him to invite representatives from many diverse faiths to take prayers at future Council meetings. I’m also delighted that my partner Henry Bruce is joining me as my consort during my mayoral year. I feel very lucky to have Henry by my side. I know he will do a magnificent job, and I’d like to thank him again and ask him to come forward and be presented with his badge of office.

I feel particularly fortunate to be appointed Mayor just as we come out of the Covid pandemic. My first engagements include celebrations for the Queen’s Jubilee and everyone is welcome to come to Pavilion Gardens on Saturday for the Family Day in conjunction with Brighton Fringe. I will also be attending a Blue Plaque unveiling and greeting contestants in the electric vehicle race as they cross the finishing line. I do hope as many of you as possible will get your friends and families to come along to as many events as you can, so we can raise what’s needed for all these charities. But if you’re not one of these charities, I will still be working for you: I want to support as many in the city as possible, so please tell any organisations you’re involved with to invite me along to attend events and help them to increase their profile and help their fund-raising too.

I’d like to end by congratulating Cllr Robins on his two years during such unconventional times. The pandemic has been something that has had an impact on everyone in the city, and I hope we can now move forward and enable the city to recover. I’d like to invite Cllr Appich to move a formal vote of thanks to Cllr Robins as retiring Mayor.”

6.2      Cllr Appich told members: “thank you Madam Mayor. Cllr Robins has been a brilliant Mayor during very unusual times. He had to chair many a long meeting, often online rather than face to face, but he was always cheerful and always impartial. I recall one meeting that went on until close to midnight. Although Alan has been Mayor for two years, he has not had much time to hold events where many people could attend in person and contribute to his charities, but he has done all that he could to promote the mayoralty and his charities. The report tells us that there were 262 engagements in 21/22 despite the pandemic which seems a huge amount of work; he has done everything he could, ably supported by his Consort Val. As he has mentioned they recently got married, and I’m told they were even married in the Mayor’s Parlour, so how is that for commitment? As a ward Cllr, Alan has remained strictly apolitical on controversial matters such as the cycle lanes; but where complaints from constituents are not party political but just case work, he has always been available to help. The day to day Council work has not been neglected by him; he has mucked in and done his bit and I am really glad that he will be returning as a Labour Cllr to continue to make his huge contribution to Portslade, Hove and Brighton, in that order, in his political life. I understand that he’s even got a job lined up advising the seafront office on which paint to use for our beloved railings. So during his time as mayor, Alan has done many and varied things, and I’ll just highlight a few that I know about: the list is way too long to mention them all. When we started to come out of the pandemic, he held an amazing Mayor-making reception at the fabulous Brighton Museum last September and raised a lot of money for his charities. There were some really emotional speeches there as well about the impact of the pandemic, and there were some amazing speeches from the charities about the work they do in the city, and that really resonated with all the people who came along. He has also attended the Rising Stars awards, celebrating the contribution that young people make to the food, drink and hospitality sectors in Sussex. He has attended the Chinese New Year gala event at the Attenborough Centre for Creative Arts. He has attended the tree-planting services for The Association of Jewish Refugees. He has taken part in Remembrance Day services across the city. He has greeted lawyers taking part in a walk to raise funds for Citizens Advice. He visited Cub and Scout groups to explain the duties involved in being Mayor of the city of Brighton & Hove: it’s important that young people learn about the city and the mayoral functions. He has attended the partnership day at Meadowview Community Centre, judging Halloween costumes; and he has attended the launch of the Oral History project at Stanmer Park recording local residents’ memories – and that’s amazing; if you’re up there, do listen to them as it’s a brilliant project. And finally he launched the Brighton Business and IP Centre at the Jubilee Library. So Alan, on behalf of the Labour Group, the Council and our residents, I would like to thank you, and you Val, for all you’ve done as first citizens in representing our wonderful city during this very difficult two years, and I move the official vote of thanks.”

6.3      The Chair thanked Cllr Appich and invited Cllr Allcock to second.

6.4      Cllr Allcock said: “Thank you Madam mayor. I’d like to echo Cllr Appich’s thanks and sense of gratitude to Alan as the outgoing Mayor for your exemplary service as first citizen of Brighton & Hove in exceptional circumstances. I’d also like to personally thank Val for her significant support for Alan in his role – a huge contribution to the city Val, thank you. Cllr Robins has served the people of Portslade for many years, and has truly earned his turn as mayor of the city. I know he was looking forward to working closely with the Mayor’s charities in getting out and about in the community, and has already been explained, both by Alan and Cllr Appich, the timing of his mayoralty coincided with the unprecedented pandemic which made the role very different and a more insulated one than usual. But, being a good sport, Cllr Robins took this on the chin and dutifully took on a second year in order to have a good stab at the usual duties that the mayoralty entails, including the crucial fund-raising efforts. I know that Alan was very concerned that this was hard during the pandemic, so it was good to really crack on with this during the second year. As mayor, Cllr Robins has chaired Council meetings with good humour, good nature and good grace, and we’ve enjoyed his anecdotes and stories, particularly on the technicalities of paint and painting. We’re experts, here in the Labour Group, but it’s good to share that knowledge and learning throughout the Council. So thank you Alan for your diligence and your excellent representation of our city in your time as Mayor. We welcome you back to the Labour Group with open arms, so Madam Mayor I’ll second that vote of thanks.

6.5      The Chair put the motion to the vote and it was agreed.

6.6      Resolved – That the Council formally thanks Cllr Robins.